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Most recently published stories in The Swamp.
Bryan Watch: Dec Week 1
Other than the Judiciary Committee starting hearings that are almost certain to end with articles of impeachment against Donald Trump, it was a relatively slow week in Congress. There were only 12 votes this week, but eight of them were party line.
John HeckenlivelyPublished 4 years ago in The SwampThe Media, Money and The First Amendment
One of the greatest aspects of democracy is the freedom of diverse thought and speech (intellectual Property). The Media is the best way of ensuring that and these aspects of democracy survive. The media is everywhere nowadays, on our phones, our TVs and every-time we go out of the house we are confronted by the message of media. It's no wonder then that media is the largest industry in the world, and only growing bigger.
C.R. PattisonPublished 4 years ago in The SwampWilliam Shakespeare's Justin Trudeau
It occurred to me last night that Canada’s perpetually embarrassing Prime Minster is living out the plot of a Shakespeare play.
Grant PattersonPublished 4 years ago in The SwampBreaking Down Racism (Life Lessons - Part 9)
Want to read the other parts? Find them on my Blog! Racism Lesson Learned: Racism is nuanced. Find the source of your compassion, and you find the end of racism and hate.
Keane Neal-RiquierPublished 4 years ago in The SwampA Filmmaker's Review: 'J. Edgar' (2011)
I totally missed this movie when it first came out. Why? Well, there were other films that were out roughly the same time that, even though they didn't star Leonardo DiCaprio, looked far more interesting than a crime drama about one of the world's most problematic FBI Agents. It was subsequently released without much press at the AFI Film Festival in the November of that year and I'm not gonna lie - it was like crickets for some reason. The best I could hope for was the movie poster on the back of an Empire Magazine issue from round about that time. It was then released six days later in the cinemas and even though we had a little bit more of a marketing campaign, I think with the grittiness of the trailer juxtaposed with the lightness of Christmas, nobody really noticed it was on TV for thirty seconds or so. The movie itself should've been released in the summer so that it could've had a wider audience, but with a budget of $35M and a profit of $84.9M, I think the film did do pretty well on its own given the fact that it wasn't pushed so much. I think people were watching it because Leonardo DiCaprio was in it.
Annie KapurPublished 4 years ago in The SwampWhy Do Cops Shoot?
Before I decided to dedicate myself to writing, my career was in law enforcement. I spent seventeen years in the Canada Border Services Agency, Canada’s border cops. I saw a lot of transition in my time at the border, and the greatest change was the introduction of firearms to our toolkit.
Grant PattersonPublished 4 years ago in The SwampHow We Can Use Moral Ethics to Justify Killing Baby Hitler (With a Time Machine of Course)
In this crazy complex world we live in, I think we can all agree on two things as being absolute. Tacos are delicious, and Adolph Hitler was a bad dude. Many have discussed what it would be like if Hitler had been killed before he committed his disgusting crimes on humanity. One such idea is going back in time to kill Hitler as a baby. The idea turned into a question that is a thought-provoking one, getting various answers from different people. Many deciding that killing baby Hitler would be an easy task.
Landon GirodPublished 4 years ago in The SwampTerrorism, Can It Ever Be Stopped?
Terrorism, can it be stopped? Why acts of terrorism occur. 1 December, 2019, another terrorist knife attack in London. Terrible for the victims and their families, but oh so predictable statements afterwards.
Peter RosePublished 4 years ago in The SwampClimate Change Is Accelerating:
The World Meteorological Organization issued its annual state of the global climate report this week and it was not good news. “Things are getting worse,” said Petteri Taalas, Secretary General of the World Meteorological Organization. “It’s more urgent than ever to proceed with mitigation. The only solution is to get rid of fossil fuels in power production, industry and transportation,” he said.
Robert BowenPublished 4 years ago in The SwampBrexit - What’s the Fuss About?
I lost interest in politics probably around 25 years ago. I realised that the power to change the world is not in the hands of the ordinary citizen, but was the remit of a selected few.
Diane DoranPublished 4 years ago in The Swamp66% of Students Fail Reading Test in Half the States
America’s fourth and eighth graders are losing ground in their ability to read literature and academic texts, according to a rigorous national assessment released last week. The National Center of Educational Statistics, the research arm of the Department of Education, found that two out of three children did not meet standards for reading proficiency.
Robert BowenPublished 4 years ago in The SwampA Filmmaker's Review: 'LBJ' (2016)
LBJ (2016) is not a bad film by all means, but what we're going to look at here is why critically, it isn't really that great of a film either. Directed by the same man who made This Is Spinal Tap, it fails to live up to prophecy with its confusing over-the-top dialogue and its lack of substance. Not to mention how the Kennedy brothers actually look and sound nothing like the actual Kennedy brothers. When we look at the movie through the eye of entertainment, we can see that yes, it is fairly entertaining. But, as a biopic it doesn't really hold up on its own and has been compared to other films about LBJ's presidency which are, in fact, better and more thorough.
Annie KapurPublished 4 years ago in The Swamp